Kitesurf vs Wingfoil...My humble opinion (by Phoebe)
The first time I saw wingfoiling over 6 years ago I thought it was a fad, and certainly wouldn’t be something we would ever be learning or becoming popular….to start with, it just looked uncomfortable. To make matters worse, I had only just learnt how to kite-foil and I was not looking forward to being a beginner on the water any time soon.
Fast forward to today, and honestly I’m hooked! Light wind? Strong wing? Waves, flat water? It suits all! As a loyal kitesurfer…I feel guilty to say it… but “I prefer wingfoiling”.
First things first, let me explain why I believe this is the future of watersports and why I’m so attracted to it!
- unlike kitesurfing its not intimidating. Theres no catapult moments, or the scary moments where your kite won’t relaunch. Theres a board (a rather big one to start with) and a wing…which if it does fall it the water….you just simply pick it up!
- We’ve gone “wire-less”. Simply put, unlike kitesurfing theres no lines…. not knots, no fuss!
- You take up a lot less space than our kitesurfing friends… no need to leave a 50m margin when attempting a trick!
- you can practice in offshore conditions much safer than kitesurfing…. you can simply paddle home
- you’re independent much quicker than if you were learning kitesurfing….which means..less money spent on those expensive kitesurfing lessons!
As i mentioned before, I am or was a loyal kitesurfer. There are some obvious reasons why perhaps some kitesurfers still don’t see advantages of this sport. One, you can’t jump as high and two, its a little bit more difficult to learnt tricks (in my opinion).
However, if you’re still unsure as to whether you should try this sport….I think its a must! Its fun to learn (not scary!), its accessible for almost everyone and most of all…its still in its early days of progression! Theres a lot more to come!